National Assembly of Zimbabwe

Last updated
National Assembly of Zimbabwe

15 other official names [1]
  • Shona:Dare reVanodzika Mitemo yeNyika
    Ndebele:Indlu Yabameli
    Chewa:Nyumba Ya Malamulo
    Chibarwe:Boka Rawanaikha Mitemo Yadziko
    Kalanga:Lubahhe gwebaMilili beMitunhu muPhalamente
    Koisan:Ha Ndjuu Tcuan Ana Kua Kui E
    Nambya:Igota Lyabamilili
    Ndau:Bandhla Revanoemese Mirawu Yenyika
    Shangani:Nhlengeletano ya Rixaka
    Sesotho:Sehlopano Sa Sechaba
    Tonga:Ng’anda Yaansi Yamilawu
    Tswana:Batsenelela Phuthego Ya Setshaba
    Venda:Guvhangano ḽa Lushaka
    Xhosa:Inkundla Yesizwe
10th Parliament of Zimbabwe
Logo of the Parliament of Zimbabwe.png
Type
Type
Term limits
None
History
Founded18 April 1980 (1980-04-18)
Preceded by Parliament of Rhodesia
New session started
4 September 2023 [lower-alpha 1]
Leadership
Jacob Mudenda, ZANU-PF
since 22 August 2013
Deputy Speaker
Kennedy Mugove Chokuda
Structure
Seats280
Zimbabwe House of Assembly.svg
Political groups
Government (192)
  ZANU-PF (192)
Opposition (82)
  CCC (82)
Vacant seats (6)
  Vacant (6)
Presiding officer (1)
  Speaker (1)
Length of term
Five years
Elections
Parallel voting
Last election
23 August 2023
Next election
No later than 5 August 2028
Redistricting Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, in consultation with the President and Parliament
Meeting place
House of Assembly of Zimbabwe Chamber.jpg
National Assembly Chamber
Parliament House
Harare
Zimbabwe
New Parliament of Zimbabwe.png
National Assembly Chamber
New Zimbabwe Parliament Building
Mount Hampden
Zimbabwe
Website
parlzim.gov.zw

The National Assembly of Zimbabwe, previously the House of Assembly until 2013, is the lower house of the Parliament of Zimbabwe. It was established upon Zimbabwe's independence in 1980 as one of two chambers of parliament. Between the abolition of the Senate in 1989 and its reestablishment in 2005, the House of Assembly was the sole chamber of parliament.

Contents

Since the 2023 election, the National Assembly has had 280 members. Of these, 210 are elected in single-member constituencies. 60 seats are reserved for women, and are elected by proportional representation in 10 six-seat constituencies based on the country's provinces. The last 10 seats are reserved for youth and are also elected through proportional representation in 10 one-seat constituencies based on the provinces as well. [2]

Jacob Mudenda has been Speaker of the National Assembly since September 2013.

History

Under the 1980 Constitution, 20 of the 100 seats in the House of Assembly were reserved for the country's white minority, although whites and other ethnic minorities made up only 5% of the population at the time. These seats were abolished by constitutional amendment in 1987. [3]

This size of 100 seats was used for two elections, the 1980 election held immediately before independence and the 1985 election. The 1990 election was the first election after the abolition of the white-reserved seats, and also expanded the House of Assembly to 120 seats, a size which was retained for the 1995 and 2000 elections.

With the 2005 election, the House of Assembly was expanded to 150 members. 120 members were directly elected in single member constituencies using the plurality (or first-past-the-post) system. The President appointed twelve additional members and eight provincial governors who held reserved seats in the House. The remaining ten seats were held by traditional chiefs who were chosen by their peers. All members served five-year terms.

Following the 2008 election, the House of Assembly was expanded to 210 seats and composed entirely of elected representatives. [4] The appointed and ex officio members were transferred to the Senate. The Seventh House of Assembly was opened on August 26, 2008. The additional system of 60 seats reserved for women was established for the 2013 election. An additional 10 seats - one for each Province - reserved for a youth quota was established for the 2023 election.

See also

Notes

  1. Under the Constitution of Zimbabwe, a new term of Parliament begins on the day that the President-Elect is sworn in following a general election. Members themselves were sworn in on 7 September 2023 and the first session was opened on 3 October 2023.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Politics of Zimbabwe</span>

The politics of Zimbabwe occurs in a society deeply divided along lines of race, ethnicity, gender and geography. The ZANU–PF party has historically been dominant in Zimbabwe politics. The party, which was led by Robert Mugabe from 1980 to 2017, has used the powers of the state to intimidate, imprison and otherwise hobble political opposition in Zimbabwe, as well as use state funds and state media to advance the interests of the party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Member of parliament</span> Representative of the voters to a parliament

A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members often have a different title. The terms congressman/congresswoman or deputy are equivalent terms used in other jurisdictions. The term parliamentarian is also sometimes used for members of parliament, but this may also be used to refer to unelected government officials with specific roles in a parliament and other expert advisers on parliamentary procedure such as the Senate parliamentarian in the United States. The term is also used to the characteristic of performing the duties of a member of a legislature, for example: "The two party leaders often disagreed on issues, but both were excellent parliamentarians and cooperated to get many good things done."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament of South Africa</span> Legislative body of South Africa

The Parliament of the Republic of South Africa is South Africa's legislature; under the present Constitution of South Africa, the bicameral Parliament comprises a National Assembly and a National Council of Provinces. The current twenty-seventh Parliament was first convened on 22 May 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senate (Netherlands)</span> Upper house of the Netherlands

The Senate is the upper house of the States General, the legislature of the Netherlands. Its 75 members are elected on lists by the members of the twelve States-Provincial and four electoral colleges for the Senate every four years, within three months of the provincial elections. All provinces and colleges have different electoral weight depending on their population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senate of Pakistan</span> Upper house of the Parliament of Pakistan

The Senate of Pakistan or Aiwān-e-Bālā Pākistān, constitutionally the House of the Federation, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan. As of 2023, It has a maximum membership of 96, of which 92 are elected by the provincial legislatures using single transferable vote. Four represent the Federal Capital. Members sit for terms lasting six years, with half of the house up for election every three years. Unlike the National Assembly, the Senate is a continuing chamber and hence not subject to dissolution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Assembly of Pakistan</span> Lower house of the Parliament of Pakistan

The National Assembly of Pakistan is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, with the upper house being the Senate. As of 2023, the National Assembly has a maximum membership of 336, of which 266 are directly elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, while 70 are elected on reserved seats for women and religious minorities from all over the country. Members hold their seats for five years or until the house is dissolved by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. The house convenes at the Parliament House, Red Zone, Islamabad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament of Pakistan</span> Bicameral national legislature of Pakistan

The Parliament of Pakistan is the supreme legislative body of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It is a bicameral federal legislature, composed of the President of Pakistan and two houses: the Senate and the National Assembly. The president, as head of the legislature, has the power to summon or prorogue either house of the Parliament. The president can dissolve the National Assembly, only on the Prime Minister's advice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elections in Zimbabwe</span> Political elections for public offices in Zimbabwe

The Zimbabwe government consists of an elected head of state, the president, and a legislature. The presidential term lasts for 5 years, and is elected by majority, with a second round if no candidate receives a majority in the first round. The Parliament is bicameral, consisting of the House of Assembly and Senate. Following the 2013 constitution, the House of Assembly has 270 members. 210 are elected for five-year terms by single-member constituencies. Furthermore, the constitution specifies that for the two first parliaments, there are 60 additional seats reserved for women, 6 seats per province, which are filled based on the votes for in the single-member constituencies, using party-list proportional representation, distributed using the largest remainder method and the hare quota. The Senate has 80 members: 60 are elected for five-year terms in 6-member constituencies representing one of the 10 provinces, elected based on the votes in the lower house election, using party-list proportional representation, distributed using the hare quota. Additionally the senate consists of 2 seats for each non-metropolitan district of Zimbabwe elected by each provincial assembly of chiefs using SNTV, 1 seat each for the president and deputy president of the National Council of Chiefs and 1 male and 1 female seat for people with disabilities elected on separate ballots using FPTP by an electoral college designated by the National Disability Board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament of Zimbabwe</span> Bicameral legislature of Zimbabwe

The Parliament of Zimbabwe is the bicameral legislature of Zimbabwe composed of the Senate and the National Assembly. The Senate is the upper house, and consists of 80 members, 60 of whom are elected by proportional representation from ten six-member constituencies corresponding to the country's provinces. Of the remaining 20 seats, 18 are reserved for chiefs, and two for people with disabilities. The National Assembly is the lower house, and consists of 280 members. Of these, 210 are elected from single-member constituencies. The remaining 70 seats are reserved women's and youth quotas: 60 for women; 10 for youth. These are elected by proportional representation from ten six-member and one-member constituencies respectively, corresponding to the country's provinces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Politics of Rhodesia</span>

Rhodesia had limited democracy in the sense that it had the Westminster parliamentary system with multiple political parties contesting the seats in parliament, but as the voting was dominated by the White settler minority, and Black Africans only had a minority level of representation at that time, it was regarded internationally as a racist country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senate of Zimbabwe</span> Upper house of the Parliament of Zimbabwe

The Senate of Zimbabwe is the upper of the two chambers in Zimbabwe's Parliament. It existed from independence in 1980 until 1989, and was re-introduced in November 2005. The other chamber of Parliament is the National Assembly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legislative Assembly of Samoa</span> Parliament of Samoa

The Legislative Assembly, also known as the Parliament of Samoa, is the national legislature of Samoa, seated at Apia, where the country's central administration is situated. Samoan Parliament is composed of two parts: the O le Ao o le Malo and the Legislative Assembly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1980 Southern Rhodesian general election</span>

General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia between 14 February and 4 March 1980 to elect the members of the House of Assembly of the first Parliament of the independent Zimbabwe. As stipulated by the new Constitution of Zimbabwe produced by the Lancaster House Conference, the new House of Assembly was to comprise 100 members, 80 of whom would be elected proportionally by province by all adult citizens on a common roll, and 20 of whom would be elected in single-member constituencies by whites on a separate roll.

In India, a number of political positions and university posts are held for specific groups of the population, including Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and women in some cases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Assembly (Thailand)</span> Bicameral national legislature of Thailand

The National Assembly of Thailand is the bicameral legislative branch of the government of Thailand. It convenes in the Sappaya-Sapasathan, Dusit District, Bangkok.

Electoral districts go by different names depending on the country and the office being elected.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Assembly (South Africa)</span> 1910–1994 house in the Parliament of South Africa

The House of Assembly was the lower house of the Parliament of South Africa from 1910 to 1981, the sole parliamentary chamber between 1981 and 1984, and latterly the white representative house of the Tricameral Parliament from 1984 to 1994, when it was replaced by the current National Assembly. Throughout its history, it was exclusively constituted of white members who were elected to office predominantly by white citizens, though until 1960 and 1970, respectively, some Black Africans and Coloureds in the Cape Province voted under a restricted form of suffrage.

Elections were held in Zimbabwe on 31 July 2013 for the presidency and to set the membership of Parliament, consisting of the Senate and National Assembly. Robert Mugabe of the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU–PF) was reelected President with 61% of the vote against his main contender, Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change – Tsvangirai (MDC–T), who received 34%. ZANU–PF won large majorities in both houses of Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Zimbabwean general election</span>

General elections were held throughout Zimbabwe on 23 and 24 August 2023 to elect the president, legislators and councillors. The main race for presidential office was between two candidates of Karanga origin: ZANU–PF's Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa and Citizens Coalition for Change's Nelson Chamisa. The voter rolls for the election increased to 6.5 million, up from 5.8 million in 2018.

References

  1. "Constitution of the Republic of Zimbabwe 2013, as amended to 2017". constitutions.unwomen.org. Retrieved 2022-11-26.
  2. "Preliminary Statement: Zimbabwe Harmonised Elections 2023 – Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA)" . Retrieved 2023-11-07.
  3. Zimbabwe Moves to Limit Whites' Role : Legislation Prepared to End a Guarantee of Parliament Seats, Los Angeles Times , June 24, 1987
  4. Carole Gombakomba, "Zimbabwe's Mugabe Finalizes Constitutional Amendment On Elections" [ permanent dead link ], VOA News, November 1, 2007.